The University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law 1 North Front Street Memphis, TN 38103-2189 (901) 678-2421FAX: (901) 678-5210

Business Law Certificate

CERTIFICATE IN BUSINESS LAW

The goal of the Certificate in Business Law is to enable students who are interested
in a career involving business-related practice areas to follow a specialized course
of study, to work closely with other students interested in the area, and to receive
guidance from faculty members with an interest and expertise in business law. A student
who receives the Certificate in Business Law demonstrates knowledge of fundamental
principles of business-related legal issues and competence in the skills essential
to a business-related practice.

For more information about the Certificate in Business Law, please contact Prof. Kevin
Smith at ksmith@memphis.edu.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

A student must successfully complete business-related study by taking courses from
the lists below.

Required Courses: All the following courses.

Business Organizations I (3 hours)

Corporate Tax (3 hours)*

Commercial Law Survey (4 hours) or both Secured Transactions (3) and Sales(3)

Core Electives: At least two (2) of the following courses.

Administrative Law (3)

Debtor-Creditor or Problems in Bankruptcy (3)

Mergers & Acquisitions (3)

Non-profit Organizations (3)

Partnership Tax (3)*

Securities Regulations (3)

Skills Component: At least one of the following courses.

ADR-Arbitration (2-hour skills course)

ADR-Labor (2-hour skills course)

ADR-Mediation (2-hour skills course)

Business-related Externship (2-, 3-, or 4-hour skills course)

Contract Drafting (2-hour skills course)

Mediation Clinic (4-hour skills course)

The Director of the Business Law Program may add courses to these lists to reflect
new curricular offerings and may approve substitutions in compelling circumstances.

NON-COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Student must complete at least twenty-five hours of non-course work related to business
law while enrolled in the Certificate program. The student must complete at least
five hours of work each semester. Permissible activities include participating in
the VITA program and performing pro bono work that involves Memphis Area Legal Services
Consumer or Tax units and others in consultation with the Pro Bono Coordinator and
the Director of the Business Law Certificate Program.

Student must also attend one meeting of students who are enrolled in the Certificate
program each semester.

GRADE POINT REQUIREMENTS

A student must demonstrate successful understanding of the fundamentals of business-related
law by receiving grades of at least C, and achieving an overall GPA of at least 2.5
in the building block courses of Legal Methods I and II, Contracts, and Professional
Responsibility. Students must receive a GPA of at least 3.0 in courses taken to satisfy
the Certificate in Business Law.

A student will receive the Certificate in Business Law with Honors by completing the
graded courses taken to satisfy the Certificate with a GPA of 3.5 or higher and receiving
a grade of Excellent in at least two-thirds of the non-graded courses taken to satisfy
the Certificate requirements.

ENROLLMENT

Students in good academic standing may enroll in the Certificate in Business Law program
after completing one year of full-time law study (or thirty hours as a part-time student).
A student may not enroll after the add deadline in the student’s fourth semester of
full-time study (or of the semester after a part-time student has completed forty-five
hours of study). A student enrolls by completing an enrollment form and submitting
it to the Director of the Business Law program. In completing the form, the student
certifies that he or she can satisfy the grade requirements for the Certificate program
and is committed to completing all of the Program’s requirements. A student will
be dropped from the Program if he or she fails to meet the requirements.